Most
of us can only imagine it. But Helen Francis makes
it a reality. The program leader, Digital Mine Transformation,
at our Ontario Operations, is an ultra trail racer,
running 100 miles on rugged forest paths, and up and
down mountains.
As if that’s not enough, Helen is a mother of
five kids ranging in age from age 11 to 24, a long-time
community volunteer and a multi-award winner, most
recently the YMCA Sudbury’s 2018 Women of Distinction
Award in the sports and active living category.
Mom’s
crazy
“My kids think mom is completely crazy but they’re
also quite proud of me,” chuckled Helen, who
is married to Heiko Leers, manager of Reliability
for Canada and the UK at our Operations in Ontario,
and one of the inspiring home cooks featured in last
year’s Vale News series, Food, Glorious Food!
Helen, originally from the U.K., moved to Canada at
age 21. She holds an undergraduate degree in mining
geology, a master’s in mining engineering, and
has worked at our company since 1998, with an additional
recent focus on gender equity as a member of the Mining
Industry Human Resources Council’s Gender Equity
in Mining Task Force. Helen is currently the vice-chair
for YMCA Canada and is the past chair for YMCA Northeastern
Ontario. Her connection to the worldwide community-building
non-profit organization goes back to her arrival in
Canada.
Finding friends and fitness
|
Sudbury-based
Helen Francis, smiling away during the 80-kilometre
Marin Ultra Challenge race in California last
month. The course, which takes runners through
the headlands by San Francisco’s Golden
Gate Bridge, included a 3,300-metre elevation
gain. Photo: ChasquiRunner
|
“The
YMCA was probably one of the first communities I felt
part of when I moved to Canada,” Helen said.
“I initially turned for health and fitness,
but it quickly became more than that. It became the
social network that, as a newcomer to Canada, I valued,
and it really helped me with a sense of belonging.”
Helen
took up ultra trail running a few years back. Ultra
running, she explained, is defined as more than a
marathon (42.2 kilometers). Trail running typically
takes place on a multitude of different terrain such
as mountains and forests, and “the harder the
better” is how Helen likes it.
Last
year, she won first place for women in the Run Off-the-Grid
50-kilometre trail race in Mattawa, ON., last summer,
captured second place for women in both the Haliburton
Forest and Trail 80-kilometre (that’s 50 miles)
ultramarathon and the Hamilton-based Sulphur Run (through)
forest, run!
This is Sinister
This year she’s focused on the Sinister 7 Ultra,
a 161-kilometre (100 miles!) race up and down seven
peaks in the Canadian Rocky Mountains. “It’s
probably a bit of a perverse attraction,” Helen
joked. “But it’s just another way of challenging
myself physically – obviously – but there’s
an awful lot of a mental challenge as well. I do it
as much for my sanity as I do for the pure physical
exercise.”
So just
how does she get it all done? Two words: time management.
“There’s a lot of forethought that goes
into my scheduling. If I’m dropping one of my
kids at acting or basketball, I’ll run while
they are in their activity, or I’ll go in the
very early mornings,” she said, adding that
she does her strength training with her husband. She
admits having very little time for pure leisure, like
sitting on a couch watching TV or reading a book.
Good
luck with the Sinister 7, Helen! We’ll catch
up with you (figuratively, not literally) after
your big race.
